Guest Post by Edward Viljoen: Maybe I'm Not That Interesting?

Word-of-Mouth

The truth is that word-of-mouth is quite powerful because we seem to be very interested in each other's opinion.  We seem to have more confidence in the opinion of others than we do in the vast amount of information that comes to us through advertising.  That is why word-of-mouth is an important indicator of a movie's success. 

A friend who used to work in the advertising industry told me that world-of-mouth, in a way of thinking, is more valuable than just about any other kind of advertising.  The way he explained it is that we are likely to change our mind about seeing a movie, even after deciding not to see it, if a friend gives it a favorable report. So what you think, and what you say about a product really does matter.

I Want To Know What You Think

I know that I definitely pay more attention to what friends are interested in and I'm more likely to read a book that a friend recommends than if I read an advertisement for one.  If you've read a book recently that fascinated you, I'd love to know what it is and why you enjoyed it so much. 

Sometimes Randall Friesen, the editor of Newt List gender neutral, updated New Thought classics will call me very excited about a new text he is working on.  At first I may not be interested in the book but quickly his enthusiasm for some new kernel of metaphysical wisdom he discovered infects my thinking and I find myself wanting to read the e-book too.

I Thought I Had To Buy It

Recently I received the best review of my new book, The Power of Meditation, from a friend who called me up to say that he thought he "had to" buy my book being that he is a good friend.  It seemed the appropriate and supportive thing to do but he had no intention to read it.  Then while waiting for a trip to begin he cracked the book open and began to read it.  He called me up enthusiastically to say that he was thrilled with what he was learning from the book. I thought the story was rather humorous and told it to another friend, who, based on the excitement, bought the book too. 

Now this second friend had heard of the book, been around it and around me for ages, yet it wasn't until she heard of friend number one's reaction did she become motivated to pick it up.

You really are THAT interesting.

Edward Viljoen, author of The Power of Meditation, graduated as a Sonoma County Law Enforcement Chaplain in April 1999, received a Doctorate of Divinity from Centers for Spiritual Living and was awarded the much-respected Ernest Holmes Award for exemplary demonstration of the teachings of Dr. Ernest Holmes.

Among his passions as a minister is helping other ministers and has served the Ongoing Ministers Education Conference for 10 years. Other passions include music, cats, essential oils, science fiction and leading people on tours to places in the world to experience new cultures and new ways of understanding the Divine.

http://tinyurl.com/powerofmeditation